Nguyễn Duy Bình
Foreign Languages Department
Vinh University
Tel: 0947 492 309
Email: duybinhdhv@[Link]
2021-2022
.1. The concept of translation
The word translation derives from the Latin
translatio (which itself comes from trans- and fero,
together meaning "to carry across" or "to bring
across"). The modern Romance languages use
words for translation derived from that source and
from the alternative Latin traduco ("to lead
across"). The Germanic and Slavic languages
likewise use calques based on these Latin sources
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Definitions of translation
As it is stated in Oxford Advanced Learner’s
Dictionary (2000:1438): “Translation is the process
of changing something that is written or spoken
into another language”.
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Definitions of translation
According to Catford (1965:20), “Translation is the
replacement of textual material in one language
(SL) by equivalent textual material in another
language (TL).”
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Definitions of translation
Nida (1969:12): “translation consists of reproducing in
the receptor language the natural equivalent of the
source language message, first in terms of meaning
and second in terms of style.”
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Definitions of translation
Brislin (1976): "the general term referring to the
transfer of thoughts and ideas from one language
(source) to another (target), whether the languages
are in written or oral form; whether the languages have
established orthographies or do not have such
standardization or whether one or both languages is
based on signs, as with sign languages of the deaf."
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Definitions of translation
McGuire, (1980: 2): “Translation involves the
rendering of a source language (SL) text into the
target language (TL) so as to ensure that (1) the
surface meaning of the two will be approximately
similar and (2) the structure of the SL will be
preserved as closely as possible, but not so
closely that the TL structure will be seriously
distorted.”
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Definitions of translation
Newmark, (1981: 7). "Translation is a craft
consisting in the attempt to replace a written
message and/or statement in one language by the
same message and/or statement in another
language."
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Definitions of translation
Wills in Noss (1982: 3): "Translation is a transfer
process which aims at the transformation of a
written SL text into an optimally equivalent TL text,
and which requires the syntactic, the semantic and
the pragmatic understanding and analytical
processing of the SL".
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Definitions of translation
Edmond Cary (1985, p. 85): “Translation is a
process which attempts to establish equivalents
between two texts expressed in two different
languages. These equivalents are, by definition,
always dependent on the nature of the two texts,
on their objectives, on the relationship between the
two cultures involved and their moral, intellectual
and emotional conditions.”
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Definitions of translation
Morry Sofer:
- For a successful translation career, the knowledge of
two or more languages is not enough. One should also
pursue a major technical area, such as LAW, MEDICINE,
BUSINESS, etc... (The Translator's handbook p.96)
Professional translators need to know more than a
source and a target language. They also have to
develop expertise in the SUBJECT AREAS they translate.
(The Translator's handbook p.118)
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Definitions of translation
Dubois (1974) translated by Bell (1991:5) defines
translation as the expression in another language
(or target language) of what has been expressed
in another, source language, preserving semantic
and stylistic equivalences.
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Definitions of translation
Larson (1984:3) defines translation, then, consists
of studying the lexicon, grammatical structure,
communication situation, and cultural context of
the source language text, analyzing it in order to
determine its meaning, and then reconstructing
this same meaning using the lexicon and
grammatical structure which are appropriate in the
RECEPTOR LANGUAGE and its cultural context.
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Types of translation
The term translation itself has several meanings: it can
refer to the general subject field, the product (the text
that has been translated) or the process (the act of
producing the translation, otherwise known as
translating).
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Types of translation
The process of translation between two different
written languages involves the translator changing an
original written text (the source text or ST) in the
original verbal language (the source language or SL)
into a written text (the target text or TT) in a different
verbal language (the target language or TL).
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Types of translation
This type corresponds to ‘interlingual translation’
and is one of the three categories of translation
described by the Czech structuralist Roman
Jakobson in his seminal paper ‘On linguistic
aspects of translation’ (Jakobson 1959/2000: 114).
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Types of translation
Jakobson’s categories are as follows:
1 intralingual translation, or ‘rewording’: ‘an
interpretation of verbal signs by means of other signs
of the same language’;
2 interlingual translation, or ‘translation proper’:
‘an interpretation of verbal signs by means of some
other language’;
3 intersemiotic translation, or ‘transmutation’: ‘an
interpretation of verbal signs by means of signs of non-
verbal sign systems’).
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Types of translation
Intralingual translation would occur, for example,
when we rephrase an expression or text in the
same language to explain or clarify something we
might have said or written. Intersemiotic translation
would occur if a written text were translated, for
example, into music, film or painting. It is
interlingual translation which is the traditional,
although by no means exclusive, focus of
translation studies.
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Discussion
1. What is your definition of translation?
2. What are the different types of translation
according to R. Jakobson?
2021-2022
That’s the end
of this module!
2021-2022